The Palmer’s Story

Serving The Des Moines Metro Since 1989

The first Palmer’s Deli and Market opened in 1989 with one goal in mind: serving great food with quality and freshness that you can count on. Over the past 30 years, Palmer’s has added three more stores, a bread company, and an online company, all while remaining true to our goal.

Our Culture

It all starts with our staff. We not only love food, but we also love to make it. We know the difference in food made with care and quality that’s necessary to give our customers the “Palmer’s experience”.

Palmer’s Deli and Market Through the Years

Year 1989

The First Palmer’s Deli & Market Opened

Carol and Gayle Palmer launched the first Palmer’s Deli and Market in Urbandale, Iowa. They began by serving great deli sandwiches, and they soon began adding homemade market soups and salads as well as made-from-scratch desserts. It wasn’t long until they needed to expand the operation to meet the deli’s demand. They doubled the size of their deli space, and the location has gone through two more expansions. Today, its beautiful location is at 86th and Douglas in Urbandale.

Year 1990

The Palmer’s Box Lunch was Born

Palmer’s Deli and Market introduced the Palmer’s Box Lunch. It featured one of Palmer’s popular sandwiches, a choice of one of the 25-plus market salads, chips, and the famous Palmer’s Brownie. These became the go-to catering option for local businesses and hospitals throughout the Des Moines area.

Year 1995

Palmer’s Expanded to West Des Moines

Carol and Gayle’s son, Joe and his wife Margaret, realized the opportunity for the family business to open a second location in West Des Moines. This deli has now been through three expansions, more than doubling its original space.

Year 2002

Palmer’s Opened in Downtown Des Moines

A third Palmer’s Deli and Market opened in Des Moines at Kaleidoscope along the city’s skywalk system to better serve downtown customers.

Year 2004

Palmer’s Launched Breadworks

Palmer’s created an internal division called Breadworks to oversee its artisan bread. Breadworks is responsible for making and delivering bread to all deli locations and for providing fresh-baked bread to wholesale accounts in the Des Moines area.

Year 2004

Palmer’s Added a Second Des Moines Restaurant

Ingersoll Avenue in Des Moines became the location for the fourth Palmer’s. This spot has given Palmer’s ample space to house a new deli and market, Breadworks, the central bakery, central catering, and corporate office.

Our Homemade Bread

Whether you like your sandwich on ciabatta, sourdough, or pumpernickel rye – or your soup in a hearty bread bowl – we put love and care into each loaf of bread we make. We emphasize quality ingredients and freshness. It’s a difference you can taste!

Hungry? Order Palmer’s Today!

Check out our selection of sandwiches, salads, soups, and more. We’ll have your order ready soon!